S. Koreans to fly to Pyongyang on North airliner

The South Korean family reunion delegation will board a Koryo Airline plane on August 15 after the North`s candidates disembark from the same plane.

On August 18, the North`s Koreans will board an Asiana plane in Seoul for their return trip to Pyongyang, followed by the South Koreans¡¯ return to Seoul.

A government source said August 12 that the flight arrangement was decided on through the Panmunjom liaison offices. He further added that the North Korean family reunion delegation¡¯s return to Pyongyang on August 18 would go down in history as the first North Koreans to board a South Korean jet since the division of the peninsula.

"The North Koreans will depart from Pyongyang at 10 a.m. on August 15 and arrive at Kimpo Airport at around 11 a.m," he said. "Accordingly, the South`s delegation will depart from Kimpo at noon, two hours later than originally planned."

He explained that although the scheduled arrival of the South`s delegation to Pyongyang has been delayed two hours, it would not affect the schedule for the family reunions. However, warned that although the North has not officially stated that the scheduled family reunions may be delayed, it is always a possibility.